Research advances in gold nanoparticle radiosensitization in radiotherapy for cancer / 中华放射肿瘤学杂志

ABSTRACT

Gold nanoparticles ( AuNPs) have been widely used in biomedicine due to their unique physical and chemical properties as well as good biocompatibility. Current research in this field has been focused on AuNP radiosensitization in radiotherapy for cancer. Extensive studies in vivo and in vitro have showed the radiosensitization effect of AuNPs. However, the mechanism of radiosensitization by AuNPs still requires further studies. Right now, the radiation?insensitive phase ( G0+G1 phase) to radiation?sensitive phase ( G2+M phase ) transition of tumor cells by AuNPs is widely considered as the main cause of radiosensitization. There are many influencing factors for AuNP radiosensitization such as particle size, surface modification, microscopic distribution, radiation energy, radiation dose, and type of tumor cells. Moreover, safety should also be taken into account in AuNP radiosensitization. Clinical trials of AuNPs have been carried out right now. More studies on AuNP radiosensitization are needed to achieve real clinical transformation.